AgriLab Set to Solve Africa’s Biggest Challenge – Youth Unemployment

One of Motivating Africa top fans Nana Akua Afriyie Busia and members of her team are set to put Africa…

One of Motivating Africa top fans Nana Akua Afriyie Busia and members of her team are set to put Africa on the global map with their new project AgriLab.

AgriLab is a start-up made up of a team of students from the University of Ghana with members; Isaac K. Y. Aboah, Henry Duah, Daniel K. Afriyie, and Nana Akua Afriyie Busia.

Last year, out of their dedication to change the world, Nana Akua Afriyie Busia and her team came together to discuss how Africa’s biggest challenge – youth unemployment, can be solved. Their idea saw the light when they participated at the world’s largest student entrepreneurship competition, the Hult Prize.

The Hult Prize sets a yearly challenge in partnership with the United Nations Office of Partnership and the support of President Bill Clinton that aligns with the Sustainable Development Goals, through which students join in on the challenge by presenting their idea in the hopes to ultimately win US $1 million in start-up funding to launch a sustainable social venture.

After preliminary rounds of competition against more than 200,000 applicants, and over 500 work hours, Nana Akua Afriyie Busia team AgriLab qualified to one of 27 regional finals across the world in Kuala Lumpur. Upon succeeding at this round, the team had to travel to Malaysia, this was their first traveling experience. They had to get assistance from friends and family, their personal savings, and also got support from their university.

At the Kuala Lumpur Regional Finals which took place from 29th to 30th March, in between Nana Akua’s team mid-semester exams, they had to skip school to compete against 61 other teams from more than 20 countries and they were eventually crowned winners after several rounds of pitches.

As winners of the Regional Finals, their team, AgriLab, will move into the Hult Prize Accelerator for 6 weeks in London where they would receive mentorship, advisory and strategic planning from some of the world’s most influential business leaders, as they create prototypes and set-up to launch their new social business which will create employment for the youths and marginalized group, reduce food insecurity and lastly cut food exportation into Africa.

After this accelerator phase, Nana Akua’s team will get to pitch at the Global UN Finals, which will take place at the United Nations Headquarters in New York, where hopefully they will be crowned winners and awarded the USD1 million prize by President Bill Clinton himself if they succeed as the best team.

The inspiring story of Nana Akua’s team has been one of relentlessness, passion, and tenacity forged from their individual experiences. And they were able to make it this far in the competition as a result of support received from friends and family, who has kept them motivated. Nana Akua and her team are even more encouraged now than ever, to give in their best to win the grand prize for Ghana and the rest of the African continent.

It will be Africa’s pride to have AgriLab succeed at this final phase of the competition. We need Start-Ups like this to help solve one of Africa’s greatest challenge – Youth unemployment.